Education and Training for Party Members

One important task for political parties is to organize education programs for the members. Party branches should also organize political education and training activities for community members. The goal is to empower people to become active contributors to the process of change in the community. Internal education in the party helps members to understand and contribute to the party’s work. Education programs can benefit a party by:

• Providing members with an introduction to party ideology, policies and programs

• Teaching members skills that enable them to do their tasks better

• Training members to analyze skilfully in order to better understand their problems and challenges

• Enabling members to understand how to participate in debates, discussions and decision-making

• Giving members and leaders organizational skills, such as planning, chairing, taking minutes, running a sub-committee etc.

Education and Training for Community Members

There are many ways that political parties can work in the broader community:

• Make people aware of their legal rights

• Help people learn how to get involved in processes in the community that affect them

• Learn more about and discuss general political issues such as jobs, the environment and crime

• Raise awareness about issues and campaigns that the party is involved in

• Mobilize people to become volunteers in the community – in a clinic or school.

Political Education and Training

Parties can set up a Political Education Committees to coordinate their political education activities. The task of the committee is to identify areas in which party members would benefit from political education. Political education can implementing debates on theory (Strategy and Tactics) or strategy (how to mobilize certain communities), discussions on organizational skills (how to run an effective project), or training on practical campaigning skills (writing a pamphlet or preparing a budget).

Party branches can create political education programs with a good balance between different areas and forms of political education and skills training. Experienced party members or people with special skills can become facilitators (OPIC 2012: 28).